Lover for a Week
by xshiny
Summary: Tired of always being rejected by Sasuke, Sakura finally takes things into her own hands. So She gets a love potion! But not everything is going according to plan as Sasuke isn't the one to drink the potion, But Neji! Now She has the Hyuga's eyes on her.
1. Introduction

**Lover for a Week**

**By Bebbo**

_A/N_ Decided to rewrite this story. I'll be keeping up the old chapters until I rewrite them, so if you're wondering why some seem so different, then you know why. But each chapter will likely follow the same events. Now for a few notes, when Shikamaru's team went to fetch Sasuke, they succeeded and beat some sense into him. Thus, the reason as to why he will be making appearances in the fic.

**Introduction**

"Um, Sakura?" Ino poked my arm on the table as I slouched further into my booth. The situation had gotten out of hand, it had only been a few moments after it had happened when I noticed his presence nearby. It was soon after I had bumped into my blonde haired friend in town and had dragged her to the closest cafe that I had realized that he was indeed following me.

"Sakura," Ino began again, as she looked to the booth diagonally from our own. I cringed slightly at the possible sight she was likely looking at as my back was turned to it - The sight of a stern prodigy acting like a love-sick-stalker. Ino's facial expression of utter shock and amusement was enough evidence for myself that the sight was indeed... unusual.

"Isn't that Neji?" She was pointing at him. I swallowed as my curiosity took over as I turned my head slightly in his direction.

And there he was. The familiar long black hair tied loosely behind his back was what I could mostly make out. His pale skin was only exposed by his black shorts and bandaged arms as his face was blocked from our view due to the risen menu on his table. It was rather obvious that he was trying to act as inconspicuously as he could by acting as a customer. However, he was failing miserably as the cafe consisted mostly of females aside from the male maintenance worker whose crack was hanging out of his trousers. Obviously, Neji was the better eye candy. Bringing him a lot of attention.

"Eh? He just looked over here!" Ino was poking my arm again. I sunk further into my booth. "You think he's checking me out?"

I blinked, Ino was getting the wrong idea. Especially about Neji. He would never do such an act, it was completely out of his character. Unless of course he had a little help – which he did thanks to me and my stupidity. I placed one of my hands on my forehead, my head was throbbing with an oncoming headache. Why had this have to happen to me? All I wanted was for Sasuke-kun to notice me, just a little. I let a sigh escape my lips before responding to my friend.

"He's not." I simply stated. Ino turned her eyes to mine and raised her brow.

"How would you know" I swallowed hard again.

"It's a funny story." I laughed. I could feel a pair of pale eyes monitoring our booth.

"Well he's acting like a shy school boy with a crush." I laughed nervously at that.

"Well he does have a crush..." I trailed, leaving my mind to finish the sentence with "but an artificial one.

I could see Ino raise an understanding brow towards me. She had caught on; somewhat. "Oh I see..." she smiled knowingly towards me as she further relaxed into her own booth. Sending a glare in her direction, Ino burst out laughing. Soon customers, including a certain prodigy, were directing their attention our way. Quickly I clasped my hands over mouth and hardened my glare. She snickered.

"Be quiet!" I demanded. "It's not what you think."

Removing my hands, Ino responded, "Oh? Care to explain then?"

Taking a quick glance behind us towards Neji's booth I mentally fell over. Neji had poked holes through his menu. There was no privacy here, and if Neji learned of what happened to him, it would only result in more pain for myself. Physical pain. The humiliation already, and for what I would experience for the rest of the week, would be enough for my punishment.

Biting my lower lip I quickly threw cash on our table and dragged Ino out of the cafe quickly by her arm. We had to speak in private, and with Neji intent on following me I had to make distance between us. I continued to drag Ino outside of town until we came to a clearing within the woods. Surprisingly, she made no noise of protest as she followed me here. No doubt, she was intrigued by what had happened in the cafe and was more intrigued by what had caused it.

"Okay Sakura, now that we're clear from 'enemy lines,'" Ino began, "Why don't you explain to me why all the secrecy?"

I sighed, as I ran my right hand through my pink locks. I had to tell someone to get it off my chest. In one small instant, my week was about to turn into havoc, and it was all thanks to that thrifty shop.

A/N Unfortunately, I haven't been keeping up with Naruto in their teen years. So expect different events to occur.


	2. Chapter 1: Love in a Bottle

**Chapter one: Earlier that day…**

I cursed my blond-headed teammate, Naruto, as I walked through town on my own. He just had to deliberately run of to train for the day with my Sasuke. He knew I had plans for Sasuke and myself for our day off and he deliberately took Sasuke away from me... Of course, Sasuke had no idea about our plans, but still! It was the principle of things – I, Sakura Haruno, was going to have my first date with Sasuke on our well deserved day off!

Kicking a lone rock on the street a sudden possible realization dawned on me. Sasuke may have agreed to the training to avoid me. My heart sunk at the likely possibility. Sasuke had, after all, been putting in more effort to avoid me and deter my attempts to bring us closer. Clutching my heart, I could feel the eyes of other civilians eye me with concern as I staggered across the street. Not looking where I was going, I found myself stumbling over something. I blinked, I should have been more careful, especially in my profession. Straightening up, I looked down at what had made me lose balance.

'Who the hell puts a sign in the middle of the street!' My inner self screamed as I noticed the broken stand. I sighed as I bent down to pick it up, I would have to inform the shop owner.

"Potions shop..." I read out loud as I raised a brow in amusement. The idea that such simple liquids would work was a preposterous idea to me. Rolling my eyes, I entered the store with the matching lettering beside me. A bell clanged in greeting.

"Excuse me?" I looked around. The walls were littered with shelves holding various liquids and herbs. I could even smell an odd aroma in the air – likely from the incense burning at the counter top. 'Bet it's suppose to make me want to buy this junk,' my mind mused. Sighing, I walked to the cash register, only to find no one behind the counter. I frowned in annoyance.

"Hello?" I called out again, hoping someone would hear my calls. I suddenly jumped as a young woman suddenly popped up from behind the counter. Clutching my heart again, I could only stare at the woman who had just appeared. She was a young average woman – likely no older than her mid 20s. Her black hair was pulled back as she wore a sari-like garment. I smiled slightly.

"Hello-" I greeted her, she beamed a smile back to me.

"Why hello there young girl!" She had a faint accent. "Are you looking for anything in particular? Trying to lose weight?" My eye twitched at her last question as she thrusted a bottle with a blue liquid inside. It smelled unpleasant.

"Um no I-"

"What about revenge? Or possibly you want popularity?—" A red one and then a yellow was shoved towards me.

"No I —"

"Perhaps you're here to finally get your crush to notice you?" A clear bottle.

" – am here to tell you"

"Maybe you have cramps?" An orange one now…

"I BROKE YOUR SIGN! Wait a minute what did you say?"

"You have cramps?" The woman asked as she finally noticed her sign from outside in my arms.

"No before that…" I blushed.

"Ah I see; a crush." She gave me a knowing smile. My blush only deepened as my inner self yelled at me for my idiocy. After all, love potions were fake.

"You know what, never mind I said that. Here's some money to pay for your sign. I'm really sorry." As I pushed the cash and sign towards the woman, her smile widened.

"Not a believer are you?" I nodded slightly in response.

"Sorry"

"Well, how's this – First timers get a free sample." She sang. My eyes lit up.

"Really?" I had not expected to sound so excited, but I was. It was free after all! I could just imagine that she was thinking that she had me caught in her lovely marketing web.

"Yes." The woman handed me a small bottle filled with the clear solution. "Though I must warn you, the effects on this small sample will only last for a week. As soon as it wears off, the person of your affection will forget everything that has happened to them." I nodded in understanding as I examined the bottle that would make Sasuke mine.

"Also, don't forget to be the first thing he sees, you wouldn't want him trailing another girl, or boy…"

Saying my thanks, I quickly left the store in search of Sasuke. It would not hurt trying new things for once. Besides, it's likely the only thing this solution would do is make him sick – making him in need of care! Smiling, I had to admit, there was nothing wrong with my plan using the potion, whether it worked or not. It would work to my benefit.

It was rather obvious as to where Naruto had dragged Sasuke to, and so I found them easily within the forest where Kakashi usually took Team 7 to train. I sighed dreamily as I watched the sweat glisten on his bare chest. His intense focus was enough to make my knees buckle. Suddenly, I jolted out of my daze as I felt someone's hand on my shoulder. I blinked.

""Lee-san…" I began as the fuzzy-browed nin smiled. He seemed to be in utter bliss that I remembered his name.

"Sakura-san, have you come to train as well?" I blinked in confusion. It was then that I noticed that Naruto was not the only one training with Sasuke. In fact, it seemed like all the male genins had decided to train this morning together. Not one single female, somehow I felt out of place.

"Um no, I'm just here waiting for… Naruto!" I lied as I put on a smile to distract Lee from my obvious lie. Apparently it worked.

"Naruto?" I could have sworn I saw the boy fall back just a little. Quickly, I nodded in response. "Though it looks like he's a bit busy, I'll just wait here for him."

"Lee!" The said boy looked away from me towards his teammate. Neji was frowning as he beckoned him to come. I sent a quick fake smile towards him, his frown deepened.

"Ah, Sakura-san I'm sorry but it looks like Neji-kun wants to spar."

"Oh don't worry about it. It'll be nice to see you fight. Good luck!" It was definite, I had made Rock Lee blush as he waved a goodbye and ran off towards Neji. Being grateful to the prodigy, I inspected the training area. I smiled triumphantly as I noticed a blue water bottle on top of a log, Sasuke's water bottle to be exact. Casually taking a seat on the log I stretched my arms out and knocked the bottle behind me. I let out an "Oopsie" just in case any of the boys were paying attention. Skillfully, I reached and emptied out the contents of the bottle and quickly added my own solution to it. Oddly, I felt that adding it to water would dilute the effects.

I silently laughed at myself that I had started hoping that the potion was the real deal as I placed the bottle back in place. Taking a deep breath, I awaited for Sasuke to drink from it. Not long after, the boys decided to stop displaying their testosterone for a break. I clutched my stomach, I could feel the butterflies fluttering excitedly. If the potion worked, Sasuke would look at me in a way that I had craved for in years.

"Sakura-chan!" I cringed. I gained a sudden urge to punch Naruto for running off with Sasuke and for knocking me out of my fantasy. Letting out a breath, I placed a fake smile on my face and walked towards my approaching teammate.

"Hi Naruto…" I took a quick glance towards Sasuke. My eyes suddenly bulged as my heart paced faster in fear. Sasuke had picked up his water bottle from the ground by a nearby tree and was already drinking from it. With my voice lost, and my mouth suddenly left hanging open, I did not take notice that Naruto was now beside me. He was asking me something – but I ignored him as alarms went off in my head. Sasuke was not drinking from the tampered bottle, and so 'who did that bottle belong to?' was all that I was concerned with.

"Sakura-chan?"

"Naruto, whose water bottle is that?" I cut him off, and I would have felt awful for my rudeness, but I had to know. It was a matter of life and death. So as I clutched my blond teammate's shoulder, I felt no shame in the sudden fear I saw in his eyes. He looked over to the said bottle.

"um…" My eye was twitching furiously as Naruto trailed as he racked his brain for the answer. Suddenly I noticed Kiba walking towards the log. My hair stood up on end and the sudden realization hit me like a stampede. My grip on Naruto grew stronger and I heard the boy whimper out in pain. But my attention was focused on more important matters - I did not want the dog-boy's affection! Pushing Naruto out of my way I found myself running towards the log to stop the possible atrocity. I tripped.

"Oi, Choji can I take a sip from your water bottle?" Kiba shouted towards the other genin. My eyes widened more as Naruto offered his hand to help me up. Pushing it aside I stood up quickly. I could feel invisible kunai stabbing me. Fate was being cruel as I watched Kiba begin to bend down by the log.

"Kiba, NOOOOOOOOOOOO!" He looked up, but he was too late. He was tackled on the ground before he could react. I could hear Akamaru angrily bark behind me as I pinned his master from behind.

"Sakura? What the hell?" I mentally growled at Kiba. The boy wouldn't stop struggling. 'Gomen Kiba.' I apologized mentally as I kept a strong hold on him. 'This is for your own, and my own, good.'

"Shino stop drinking and help me!" The dog-boy cried out to his teammate as he freed one hand from me. I gulped. Why was Shino close to the log? Unless? Horror flashed across my face as I looked up towards the water bottle. But it was not Shino drinking from it. He was actually beside a tree with his own water bottle. No, the situation had become more horrible than I had imagined. It was Hyuga Neji who downed the bottle in one shot. My mouth hung open as I stared at him in disbelief. After all, could the prodigy not notice a strange taste and aroma from the bottle?

Suddenly, Kiba flung me off his back. I did not care, even when Kiba began cursing me, my life was over. All I could do was muster enough energy to stare at the prodigy and hope that the potion would not work. That it was a fake, and that Neji would only get sick for a short while, and hopefully never figure out that it was my fault.

As though feeling my eyes on him, Neji glanced down from his bottle towards me. Our eyes met and remained locked on as we stared intently at one another. To the others, it seemed as though we were having an ongoing staring contest.

'Please don't work!' I prayed, hoping Neji would show a sign of distaste or disgust like before. But no signs came – at least not the one that I had prayed for. It was almost unnoticeable, because of his pale skin. But staring at him for so long, it had made it easy for me to recognize the change in skin colour around his cheeks. Although faint, it was indeed there. A slight pinkish hue graced his fair cheeks as his pale eyes filled with more curiosity instead of annoyance. Was The Hyuga Neji blushing in my presence?

Yes, he was. Leaving me to realize that the potion had indeed worked. Neji was now seeing me the way that I wanted Sasuke to. Sweating, I broke my contact with his eyes as I hung my head in defeat. Neji Hyuga was going to kill me.

"Sakura-chan why did you tackle Kiba?" Naruto asked as he helped me off the ground. I could hear a faint trace of jealously in my blond teammate's voice, but I did not care. I looked towards Hyuga and my eye slightly twitched. He was glaring at Naruto.

"Um… I." I began but could not think of a good excuse. "I need to go Naruto. Er I'll see you later!" With that said, I quickly ran off towards the town before Naruto could question me further.

Oh woe was me; I never got my chance to even speak with Sasuke. And now I had a major problem on my hands called Hyuga Neji. He was going to kill me as soon as he found out that I had 'drugged' him.

I soon found myself back inside the potions shop. I had to fix this now. Each minute Neji was infected would just translate into more pain I would receive from the prodigy as punishment. Entering the shop I quickly called out to the owner.

"I take it you were happy with our product?" The woman's smile soon disappeared as she noticed my exasperated look.

"I need a counter potion! NOW!" I demanded as I fished through my pockets for money in a hurry.

"Why would you want to reverse the effects?" The woman asked bewildered.

"He didn't drink it, someone else did. Someone scary…So I need to fix it! Counter potion now!"

"But we don't carry the counter potions…" Those invisible kunai were back again.

"What!" I cried out as my knees buckled and I fell to the ground. My life was over. I never got to experience many joys in my life. It was so short. My only dream now would be to have a nice funeral.

"I'm sorry. You see most of the customers who purchase our products have never come back asking for counter potions. So we got rid of them. I'd have to order in the ingredients, and that could take weeks."

"WEEKS!"

"But on the Brightside, your potion should only last one week. So why not just wait it out?" The woman suggested as she patted me on the shoulder.

"But what am I going to do about Hyuga?" The woman blinked at the name.

"Avoid him if you don't want anything embarrassing to happen."

That was easier said than done. As soon as I found strength I left the thrifty shop and began my journey home. It was only noon and I was calling it a day. Looking downwards I did not notice the person in front of me. Bumping into them I looked up to apologize.

"Watch where you're going!" I looked up noticing my blond-haired friend Ino glaring at me.

"Ino?" I responded and the blond blinked as she noticed it was me. A smile crossed her face and she clasped her hands together excitedly. I raised a brow in curiosity, suddenly forgetting my woes.

"Sakura!" She said happily, "Are you busy right now?"

I shook my head, her smile widened as she grabbed my hand.

"Great! Come with me to this new cafe would you?"

Before I could respond, Ino had dragged me towards the cafe. Had I been paying more attention, I would have noticed a certain prodigy trailing me from behind.

**A/N** This chapter is fixed~


	3. Chapter 2: A Lesson on Love

**A/N **Expect me to switch back and forth between Sakura and Neji's POV. As I really wanted to take a go between the two characters XD Neji has feelings? Oh my O.O

**Chapter two:**

For the first time in his life, Hyuga Neji was pacing back and forth on thoughts (aka feelings) that he was unable to decipher. He had long stopped following Sakura Haruno when she had entered her house. His pride had to stop him somewhere, and he was grateful for it. He had no idea why he could not control himself, or why he had the sudden urge to follow Haruno, or even why he actually succumbed to his urges. It was mind boggling!

So mind boggling that Neji neglected to notice that his sensei had appeared behind him.

"Ah, here is one of my beloved pupils!" Neji jumped as he felt his sensei's hand on his shoulder. 'When did he get here?' He wondered as he turned around. Gai of course had not taken noticed to Neji's surprise.

"Neji Where is your other teammates? Are they out enjoying their youthful days on their day off? You should too!" Gai laughed as he began hitting the boy on his back encouragingly. It was quite annoying actually, but Neji ignored that as he contemplated on his situation. Surely there was a reason why Gai had gotten to where he was. He had to have some sort of knowledge. Perhaps, what he was going through at the moment was some sort of stage or test he was being put through to prove that he was an excellent ninja.

"Gai..sensei. I have a question to ask…" He was already regretting his decision of speaking to Gai as his sensei's eyes sparkled in anticipation. It was not as though this was the first time he had ever asked him for help… was it? He knew he rarely did; but he could see why that was so.

"Yes Neji? Oh what wondrous news to have my pupil ask for advice! Do not hold back any information Neji, my ears are opened, ready to listen…" Maybe this was his first time asking Gai for help. What had he gotten himself into?

"Never mind sensei, it is not important." Hyuga responded as he began to leave his sensei at the training area. It was the one place that Hyuga frequented and was comfortable with – plus he had hoped to bump into Lee. Beating him up would have occupied his mind more than Haruno.

"Nonsense! What ever it is, it must be important!" Gai pressured as he clutched the prodigy's shoulders. "And what ever it is, I will help you!"

Neji ran through his thoughts one last time before deciding, "All right sensei I'll tell you." He was hoping he would not regret his decision and that Gai would have the right answers. His face tensed as he noticed Gai's face brighten at his response, clearly pleased with his pupil's decision. "It's about Haruno."

Sakura sneezed, someone must be speaking about her.

"Haruno? Kakashi's pupil?" Gai's hand soon found its way to his chin. He was doing his super cool thinking pose.

"Hai, I'm not sure what to say. It's difficult to describe…" Gai nodded in understanding. Though, Neji doubted he did. But he had to find a way to describe his situation without completely embarrassing himself; even if he was speaking to Maito Gai. "…What can you tell me about her? Strength wise, nothing personal – unless of course that's all you know then – well you don't have to tell me but…"

His sensei blinked as he looked down at the Hyuga prodigy. He was stumbling over his words! This was the same boy that had ignored his lectures on acting more youthful! But yet he was. 'Could he have taken my advice?' was just one of many happy thoughts that flowed through Gai's head as he beamed at his student.

"Neji, I am so happy! You are finally experiencing a youthful experience!" Neji raised a horrified brow at this. "But then again you are at that age when things become strange around the opposite sex. I, of course, believed you would be experiencing such things with Tenten, since she was the only female you've truly conversed with…"

"Wait a minute, what do you mean by I'm 'at that age?'" Gai's eyes glistened with joyful glee as he draped an arm around Neji's shoulders. Neji could only pray to whatever higher power there was that Maito Gai would not cry in front of him.

"You're becoming a man!" Neji had managed to slip away from his sensei's arm. It was uncomfortable…

"…becoming a man…" Neji repeated. The answer was obviously not what he had been looking for. It was too ridiculous!

"Yes Neji, a man! Oh what a joyous occasion this is! We must get the team together and celebrate!"

"NO!"

"Who would have thought that both my male pupils would not only be rivals in strength but love as well!" Neji choked. 'Love?' What did that have to do with anything!

"Sensei you're mistaken, I'm not in Lo…Lo… lo… I'm not with Haruno!" He was blushing deeply and Gai had taken notice. Thus, the reason to why his smile deepened.

"Ah Neji, we can't help who we get attracted to. And both you and Lee seem to have similar tastes in women." Why was Neji speaking to this man? He knew from experiences in battle that his sensei always over exaggerated. He had set himself up.

"Sensei I refuse to believe that I see Haruno in that way. I barely know her!" He argued, this was unbelievable. Him in Love. It was laughable! But his sensei 'tsked' at him.

"My cute, youthful experiencing pupil, you are in denial! I always figured you'd go into denial when you have your first crush. And what a joyous occasion this is! You told me about it. You know Neji I always dreamed you would come to me and ask me about love. Oh my, you must see as a father figure," He was crying and Neji was cursing whatever god there was. "We must celebrate! Quickly we must find your other teammates!"

"NO!"

"I must better prepare myself for when you ask me about the birds and the bees…" 'To hell I'd ever ask you for advice ever again. Wait, 'birds and bees?''

"Sensei I think I'm fine for now…" Neji would have to ask his teammates (Tenten) about what Gai meant by 'birds and bees.' Gai was just too emotional.

"Wait Neji! Do you plan to do anything about your new found 'youthful' feelings?"

"What do you mean sensei?"

"Neji if you bottle up your feelings you'll never conquer them." Conquer? That seemed very close to combat and victory to the Hyuga. Was love really a battle between himself and his feelings? This was more complicated than he hoped.

"How would I go about that sensei?" His sensei was crying again. Why him?

"My loving pupil," Neji cringed. "You must win the heart of your affection of course!"

"And how exactly do I win the heart…?" For the first time in his life, Hyuga Neji was scared. His sensei was spluttering off nonsense and it intrigued him.

"You must woe her." Gai nodded as he once again began patting Neji on the back encouragingly.

"And how do I 'woe' her?" Gai of course was taken back by this. His pupil was taking an interest and was listening with all ears! He was so proud; it made him want to cry. And he did, much to Neji's distaste.

"With my help of course!" Somehow, taking Gai up on that offer was the only choice he had to beat his 'feelings.' After all, there was no chance in hell he would ever ask Lee for advice or even his uncle. Gai was his only solution at this point…

Sakura yawned; her afternoon nap was quite peaceful. Perhaps everything that had gone wrong was actually just a dream. A very hellish, nightmare of a dream. But she was soon reminded that it was not a dream but reality as she looked inside her waste bin near her bed. The bottle that had caused her to worry lay empty on top of her trash.

Sakura slumped back down onto her bed. She had no intention of going out and confronting her teammates or anyone else for that matter. She was going to stay home! Her thoughts drifted towards her goodbye with Ino.

"Don't worry Sakura. Even if you did royally screw up and tried to drug Sasuke and is getting a fitting punishment-" Damn that Ino-pig. "- Neji does not seem like the type to approach you suddenly. He's always caught me as the shy type. He'll just follow you in the shadows until the week is done. Nothing completely embarrassing."

She was right though. Sakura had played that same game with Ino before. A game that revolved around the type of boys their genin companions were. They did one for the girls as well, but distinguishing between the boys was more fun. And in her own thoughts, she saw Neji as either being gay; where he would act as the seme in the relationship, or he'd be extremely shy around females; because he would not have the expertise in that 'field.'

Cheering up slightly with her new revelation Sakura jumped out of bed and walked downstairs. She could hear already in her room, that her parents were doing their daily activities. No doubt they were gardening as it was the season. Her head popped up slightly as she heard the doorbell ring. Walking to the door and then propping it open the girl blinked in total surpise. Standing before her was none other than Hyuga Neji. And once again the pink haired kunoichi noticed the crimson hue that laced across his cheeks. She didn't know what to say or do.

"Haruno…san." The shy boy began as he avoided eye contact. How right she was that he was the 'shy type.'

"Would you like to train together?" Inner Sakura was having a field day. But Sakura knew that it would be awkward, for both of them, if Neji had come out and asked her flatly to go for dinner.

"You want to train with me?" Sakura repeated, 'how exactly do you let down a Hyuga?' She wondered as she smiled slightly. Did his blush just redden even more?

"Y-yes." He responded. Normally he would have been annoyed at the fact that she repeated his offer. But somehow he couldn't, not with her. Instead he became even more nervous. Another 'feeling' he was not familiar with.

"…Sure…" Sakura had no reason why she had accepted. Neither did her Inner self as she tried to choke her mentally. But it was only training. Nothing bad could come from training with Neji, other than lots and lots of pain. 'What have I gotten myself into!' Sakura's mind screamed. At least they would be alone, and no one would see them. Or at least, that was what she had hoped for.

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**A/N: **Gai is a fun character to write XD After writing this chapter it makes me inspired to write a fanfic of Neji going off to search for the meaning of the phrase 'birds and the bees.' I'll leave that for later though. Anyways thanks to the reviewers! I'm a tad surprised, I've just reached my highest peak of hits o.O and on only 2 chapters (more like a chapter and a half…) I got a favourite! That was a great motivation to make me write this chapter. Here's hoping it was humorous for you all, and very believable. ;

Sharem: Thanks XD I hope you enjoy this chapter as well :)

qtkag: Thanks, and here's the update XD

Kioji: I plan too 8) Thank you for the fav!

al2010: Thanks. Somehow I only see Sakura tackling Kiba It was fun xD


	4. Chapter 3: Flowers over Scars I

**A/N:** My I didn't expect to double my comments and favourites so fast ; But yay! Thanks for the comments guys! I'll make sure to respond to you all at the end of this chapter, so I hope you enjoy it

**Chapter three:**

Sakura was panting, hard. The Hyuga had surpassed her expectations and definitely made Sakura run for her money even more. Regardless of his situation, Hyuga Neji saw no need to hold back the true reason as to why he was considered a 'prodigy.' Not only was Sakura hurting at every fiber in her body, her pride was hurt. Sure, she never once believed she would be able to beat the Hyuga at her current state in training. But her pride was injured, her beautiful hair was a mess, and she was sweating!

Unlike herself, the Hyuga did not seem to be injured or hurt at all, his hair was perfect, and he had not even broken a sweat. 'Damn him to hell' Inner Sakura cursed as she clenched a mental fist and shook it towards the prodigy. But the boy, as though he sensed Sakura's negative thoughts towards him, did 'appear' to be exhausted.

"Neji-kun, you really are a genius…" Sakura muttered jealously under her breath as she continued to pant on the ground. She was too exhausted too stand.

"Haruno-san, we should call it day." The boy breathed smoothly. Sparring always eased his thoughts. And though, as much as he would have loved to continue to do so, it appeared that Sakura was at her limit. He was right of course.

Sakura nodded in agreement. Somehow she wanted to regain back her energy so she could try to wipe that smug smile off his face – well the smile he would have if he was not intoxicated by her presence. At least the potion was good for something. Standing up suddenly Sakura soon found herself falling face forward. Her legs had given out. Fortunately, she never landed as she was caught by bandaged arms. With a blush soon finding its way on her face Sakura found herself within the arms of Hyuga Neji. He had caught her and was quite gently holding her body closely to his.

This, of course, was by mistake. As Neji's mind finally calculated their proximity his face grew hot. But he never released his hold on her. "Ano… Neji-kun" His name sounded so nice coming from Haruno's small pink lips. In fact, they were so close together that one would think they would deepen their embrace and lock their lips together, much like those movies Hinata-sama liked watching…

"Neji… You're hurting me" Sakura gasped, Neji's grip had been tightening around her. His blush deepened.

"Sorry!" He quickly said as pulled her further away from his body. He missed her body heat already and her aroma. In response Sakura could only laugh nervously as she regained her footing and stood on her own.

"It's fine, I should be leaving."

"Y-yes… we should do this again some other time – training that is." Sakura nodded.

"I'm sure we will. Bye Neji!" with that said Sakura quickly ran off towards her house. Leaving the Hyuga to stare at her back as she left.

"Bye Sakura-san…" He said dazedly. He shook his head. He was acting out of his character. Why had he listened to Gai when he had told him to ask Sakura to do something with him?

But the prodigy was not angry at his sensei. In fact he was secretly grateful that the older man had given him advice that had worked. But Hyuga Neji had no plans to admit he had any sort of affection towards Haruno Sakura! Neji blushed; he could still remember her smell and soft skin. Not only that, but the physical contact during their training had made his heart leap with joyous content.

Fortunately for the Hyuga he had excellent control for when it came to fighting. Thus, the only reason he was able to prevent himself from reaching out to Sakura and pulling her into a tight embrace every time he inflicted her pain. Which was quite often during their match.

Neji made a mental note to inform Sakura to better her defenses as soon as he figured out how to speak to her normally. But at this moment, when he was around her, he was speechless.

He started his trek home with these thoughts in his head. He would meditate on these thoughts further in the comfort of his room.

As soon as Sakura had reached home she had drawn herself a bath. Her muscles were aching thanks to a certain pale-eyed boy. Peeling off her smelly and sweat-soaked clothes, Sakura entered her tub. The warm water was soothing as she lay there. She blinked, thoughts of the day's events passed through her head. Sakura found herself lowering her body until her mouth was cover by water. It was basic habit she had when she would think about something serious in the tub. And the situation at hand was very serious.

Why had she agreed to train with Hyuga Neji? Especially since she had already decided she would avoid the boy like the plague. Perhaps it was his intimidating aura that forced the girl to comply to his demands, or she was curious to what he had to offer.

'Nope, definitely the first.' Inner Sakura stated as she folded her arms. Yes, it had to be the first. Sakura had already professed her love to Uchiha Sasuke and would not falter! True love does not falter. And that is what she shared with her dear Sasuke-kun.

"Oh Sasuke-kun" Sakura murmured under the water as she looked dreamily ahead. She had fantasies that the Uchiha boy would act like the way Hyuga was in his current position. But fate was cruel to the pink haired girl. 'On the Brightside,' Sakura's mind buzzed happily, 'I'll be spending the day with Sasuke!' Of course that would include Naruto and Kakashi, as they had earlier planned that the four of them would train together during the week. But anytime spent with Sasuke was precious. Regardless of who was there to spend it with her.

Neji was set. He had not too long ago returned home, showered, and begun meditating. He needed to find the answers on his own as to how to rid his mind of Haruno Sakura. As soon as he had closed his eyes he was bombarded with images of the pink haired-kunoichi.

Neji growled in distaste as his mind was lingering more on thoughts of her rather than a solution. He needed clearance that he was not going through, what Gai had called, 'a youthful experience.' The last thing Neji needed in his life was to have Gai praise him for something other than his intellect and strength. That was why Lee was in the group; to obviously distract the team's sensei from poking into the other teammates' personal lives.

Neji had no objections to that. But he does to when the roles are switched! Perhaps Lee had done this to him. Maybe he had finally learned how to use chakra and was using him like a puppet?

This was a possibility.

He'd have to put more effort into their spar tomorrow when they meet up to train with Gai. The Hyuga smirked maliciously as he pictured the pain he would bring his 'mischievous' teammate.

But of course the Hyuga thought of the possibility that Lee was not responsible for the boy's obvious discomfort during the day. In that case, Neji planned to let out his frustrations onto Lee during their spar. But it would still leave him without a solution to his problem.

Why was he, Hyuga Neji, so interested in Team Seven's only female? Neji racked his brain for the answers he seeked. And by the end of it, he not only came up with rather odd theories but he was very exhausted.

**Day two**

Sakura was beaming as she rocked back and forth on her sandals as she stood next to Sasuke on the bridge. Naruto was obviously fidgeting impatiently as he sat down dangling his legs off the bridge. Kakashi was late once again and Sakura was happy for it. It just meant she had more time to be next to Sasuke before they had to train.

"Where is he? What's taking him so long?" Naruto asked angrily as he got up and began pacing.

"Hmph." Was the lone response the fox-boy received from Sasuke as he continued to ignore his teammates. Sakura was much too busy admiring Sasuke's profile to even answer Naruto. But her admiration was cut short as Kakashi appeared on the bridge with a puff of smoke. Naruto was not amused.

"Where have you been?" Naruto asked as he stomped his foot childishly. Kakashi only smiled and gave him one of his famous lies. "LIAR!" Naruto pointed as Kakashi only smiled and waved his hands in front of him defensively.

"So about training, are you guys ready?"

"We've been ready for two hours sensei…" Sakura answered as she 'tsked' the older man. Old habits never die.

Lee's dream had once again been crushed as Neji sent him the final blow, knocking the green beast to the ground. Tenten could only shake her head in pity at her fallen teammate.

Neji had come to the familiar training ground and had demanded that Lee prepare himself for a spar. It was quite surprising, as Lee would be the first to approach the Hyuga. But the poor enthusiastic boy found out why as he tasted dirt in his mouth. Hyuga Neji was in a bad mood.

Before Lee could recite his speech of beating Neji, Gai interrupted his prized pupil as he draped an arm around Neji; much to his distaste. "That's it for now! Let us go celebrate!"

"Celebrate what?" Tenten asked as she gathered her weapons from where she was training.

'He wouldn't…' Neji thought as he looked up to his sensei with narrowed eyes. Gai did not seem to notice however.

"To celebrate Neji's first youthful experience!" He did! If Neji could kill him with his eyes he would have. His arms were a bit tangled as he was engulfed by Gai in a hug. Tenten only raised a brow as Lee smiled in surprise.

"Really? Neji, you had a youthful experience?" He asked excitedly as he jumped and joined his sensei in the 'hug.' Not only did the prodigy wish a painful wish for his idiot of a teacher and teammate, he also wanted to wipe away Tenten's teasing smile.

"I've had no such thing." He said through gritted teeth as he struggled from their embrace.

"Neji, my new youthful experiencing pupil you mustn't stay in denial! Accept your feelings and shout them to the world. There is nothing wrong with having feelings towards the opposite sex!" Neji cringed, not because he thought he felt a rib break from the strong embrace but from what Gai was saying. He had to shut him up…

"Neji is having that experience! Don't worry Neji, both Tenten and I are here to help you with whatever questions you have. We've been through this one before!" Lee happily offered. Neji could only wonder which boy had the 'joy' of being Tenten's first youthful crush. She was not as innocent as she looked.

"So Neji who is this person of the 'opposite sex giving you youthful experiences?'" Tenten asked as she leaned towards her teammate. Neji could only narrow his eyes dangerously to warn the girl to back off. She ignored it as she continued to tease him.

"Finally, my beloved pupils are at the same level!" Neji blinked, was he behind Tenten and… Lee? Had he been trailing behind the two of them without his notice? Neji had wanted to say his thoughts out loud, but stopped himself. He knew what the price was for saying his mind. He was receiving his punishment already for confining in Gai. The boys ended their embrace.

"Yes sensei! Let us stride towards the sunset with our fists up high!" Lee said with glee as he thrusted a fist up in the air. Tenten rolled her eyes as Gai began crying.

"Lee, it's only noon." She said as the boy rubbed his head sheepishly. "Why don't we just get lunch? And Neji can tell us who the lucky girl is- Neji? Wait, where did he go?" The trio looked around them, but there was no sign of the Hyuga prodigy. He had already made his escape as soon as they had let go of him.

**----------------**

**A/N:** Neji is such a lady's charmer Beating the girl obviously puts you in her high regards, rofl. I'm posting this chapter up now since I doubt I'll get the chance to post another chapter up for tomorrow. I have to go school supply shopping early tomorrow TT Le ew! And then I'm off to watch a drive show? er..Anyways onto my adoring reviewers

Sharem – I'm so glad you liked it XD It's seems like you weren't the only one who liked it as well. Thanks!

Miaa- You never know what may happen in future chapters. Cough

Ninja Bunny- rofl I love your reference to colgate. It definitely made his smile 3 shades whiter XD Thanks for the vote of confidence, I was a tad worried I made him unbelievable.

Kioji- thanks, I feel honoured then glad to hear I kept Neji in character, I was a tad worried for him too.

furryhatlover2543- Thanks XD

GinaCat – Thank you 3

Kin-Suzume – you never know what may be in store for future chapters cough

Fairydustgems - Thanks for the review! And yes she is going to find herself in some rather funny situations.

Gtkaq - Poor Neji indeed. He truly is a victim of my unfaltering love for him XD

Al2010 – Thanks! You're not the only one who seems to be encouraging for the NejiSaku and I can definitely see why everyone wants that. But of course I haven't written in Sasuke's thoughts as yet 8)

Sakura5584.and.Naruto5 – Thank you 3


	5. Chapter 4: Flowers over Scars II

**A/N:** This is actually still chapter 3 but I'm leaving it as 'ch 4' and calling it part 2. If you guys haven't noticed, I gave names to my chapters XD Response to reviews, as always, are at the bottom .

**Chapter 4:**

"Sakura-chan Watch out!" Naruto yelled in warning as the branch, that his female comrade was on, broke as the exploding tag ignited. With a yelp the pink haired kunoichi fell to the ground and landed with a thud as Sasuke used the distraction to send a sneak attack at Kakashi. As if noticing the attack, Kakashi simply swirled his arm backwards and blocked the kick targeting the nap of his neck.

"Sakura-chan!" Naruto quickly ran towards her. "Are you all right?"

As Naruto helped his teammate up, Sasuke was tossed to the ground. Sakura clenched her teeth as the pain shot up her upper arm. "I'm fine. Go help Sasuke," Sakura assured Naruto as she smiled gently. Nodding the boy ran off towards the fight.

It was only natural that Kakashi had won the little match between himself and his three students. But they still moped over their fresh bruises and scarred pride.

"I'm glad to see that you guys have improved since last time." Kakashi rubbed his head as he received three pairs of glares directed towards him. He chuckled slightly. "Why don't we go get lunch?" This of course, made Naruto smile brightly as he jumped to his feet.

"Ramen!" He shouted as he tugged on Kakashi's arm eagerly. The older man only laughed in response as his other hand held his precious book.

"Eh, Naruto, we had that last time!" Sakura objected as she thwacked the boy on his head. "How about sushi!" After all, ramen was not the most slimming food out there for a woman's figure.

"Aw, but Sakura-chan I don't like raw fish!" She glared as he protested. Whimpering slightly the blonde stopped.

"Hm, sushi eh?" Kakashi repeated as Sakura nodded. "Sasuke, are you all right with sushi too?" The said boy made a slightly disturbed face. This gave Naruto a little more encouragement.

"See Sakura, Sasuke doesn't want sushi-" Naruto smiled as Sakura shot the blond an evil glare.

"Fine!" She folded as she had no intention of ever going against her dear Sasuke. Naruto cheered but stopped as he noticed someone off in the distance.

"Eh, isn't that Neji?" asked Naruto as he squeezed his eyes closer to get a better look. "It is him – Hey Neji!" The said boy jumped slightly. Naruto beckoned the boy over as he called out to him. Trying to ignore the boy, the prodigy continued to walk further away. That just caused Naruto to shout even louder. Cringing, the boy complied to acknowledge the group.

"Neji what are you doing here?" Naruto asked as the boy finally turned around. Did he have to shout so loud? The Hyuga wondered as he made his way towards team seven. "Are you training?"

"Hn." Neji lied as he reached a reasonable distance. He had no plans of informing them that he was hiding from his team because he did not want to celebrate his 'youthful experience' with them.

"Oh kay - are you taking a break?" Naruto was beaming with questions today, the Hyuga thought as he responded with a nod. "Great, why don't you come to lunch with us! Kakashi is treating." The said teacher looked up from his book.

"Pardon me?" Sakura only laughed at her teacher's bewilderment.

"Think of it as punishment for being late." She said as she laughed.

"I wouldn't want to intrude." The pale-eyed boy responded causing a fold on Kakashi's mask to form into a smile.

"No intrusion whatsoever!" Naruto smiled as he began tugging on the Hyuga's arm. Neji raised a brow at the friendliness. He began questioning if this was the same Naruto that had defeated him. His eyes shifted towards the blonde's pink haired companion. He blushed slightly. "Come on Neji!"

"Fine." The Hyuga agreed. He wanted Naruto to stop touching him.

"All right lets go for some ramen!" Naruto shouted in the air as he thrusted an arm up. Neji could feel the urge to roll his eyes. But he did not. He did notice Sakura do it, and blushed again. He was glad that the others did not notice.

As the five of them walked towards the 'oh so famous' ramen stand, Neji kept glancing at Sakura as they walked together. Sasuke was up ahead by his lonesome self, and Naruto tagged along side Kakashi trying to coax the man into buying seconds. He was failing.

"Aw come on Kakashi!" Naruto begged as he tried to snatch the book from the man's view.

"No." His sensei simply responded as he moved the book further from the boy's reach. Naruto pouted.

"Dobe." Sasuke muttered as he continued to walk ahead.

It did not take the group long to reach the ramen stand and Naruto was very quick to order. Sakura silently 'tsked.' 'He could at least show some control!' Her inner self lectured as Sakura took a seat next to Sasuke. She did not take notice that the Hyuga had taken the other seat next to her.

The group conversed on small topics as they waited for their ramen. Well, Naruto and Sakura did. Kakashi would toss in a few phrases or so, and to not be rude Neji made sure to say a few words. Sasuke just remained silent as he was in his own little world.

"Oh right!" Kakashi began as their food was placed in front of them. "I won't be able to make it to training for the rest of the week."

"Eh!" Naruto said in shock as he swallowed some of his food. "But you promised you'd help us this week!"

"Sorry, but I was assigned an important mission." Naruto pouted as Sakura sighed. It could not be helped.

"Sensei, you're really busy lately." Sakura commented. Kakashi nodded.

"It's because of the season, and a lot of people seem to need a lot of high ranked missions to be completed. Don't be surprised if you guys get a few this year." Naruto cheered. Neji wondered if that meant his sensei would leave on a mission soon. He could only hope.

"I'm sure Neji already knows that Gai is leaving for a mission tomorrow as well." Suddenly there was something for Neji to celebrate. He would eat to that!

---

Gai sneezed as Lee took another serving of beef. They had gone to the 'All you Can Eat BBQ' restaurant.

"Gai-sensei are you getting a cold?" Lee asked worriedly.

"Ah Lee, I would never get a cold at such a time!" Gai smiled as he did his seated 'cool pose.' Lee had tears in eyes instantly.

"Honestly Lee, I do wish you wouldn't do that when we are in public." Tenten muttered as she sipped her tea calmly.

---

Bidding them farewell Kakashi was off to do last minute stops. Naruto sighed as the four genins stood in front of the ramen stand.

"I guess that means we're training without Kakashi tomorrow." Sakura nodded. She was a bit disappointed as well.

"Oi Sasuke where do you think you're going? We need to set up a time for us to meet up tomorrow!" Naruto yelled at Sasuke's back as the boy walked away from the group. The boy waved him off.

"I train alone." He responded as he continued to walk away.

"But we need more practice as a team!" Sakura added as she began following the Uchiha, Naruto agreed as he and Neji followed.

"Others slow me down." He tossed back bitterly making the pink haired girl stop in her tracks. That one stung, as it had been her fault when Kakashi had found their position earlier in their training.

"Oi Sasuke, don't just blame us! We all lost to Kakashi!" Naruto argued as he stopped in front of Sakura.

"It wasn't my fault we were found." The Uchiha said as he stopped to turn his head and glare at his blond haired 'companion.' Neji noticed that Sakura had clenched her fist.

"That was an accident! It was not Sakura's fault! We-"

"No Naruto it was my fault. He's right." The tears were threatening to come out as Sakura avoided eye contact from the two. The last thing she wanted was for Sasuke to see her cry. "Ano- I need to go, so I'll see you guys later!" With that said Sakura ran in the direction of her house.

"Sakura-chan…"

"Haruno-san…"

"Oi Sasuke! You hurt Sakura's feelings!" Naruto yelled as he pointed an accusing finger towards the said boy. The boy just 'hmphed.' Neji glared at the Uchiha. He had made Sakura cry. And though Neji neglected to accept his feelings for the pink haired kunoichi, he had questioned as to why he had not 'beaten the crap out of him.' Sasuke's brow rose slightly as he noticed the Hyuga giving him a glare. Not that it had an affect on him.

"You expect your team to work smoothly together- yet you refuse and ridicule them when they ask you to help them improve so they can be better teammates for you. You don't deserve Haruno… and Naruto." Neji commented as he dared the boy across from him to challenge him with his eyes. He would show him just how far he was ahead of him because of their 1 year difference.

"Neji is right!" Naruto agreed; he was oblivious to the fact that Neji had actually just meant Sakura.

Sasuke smirked arrogantly. "Well if he 'treasures' you two so much – he can have you." With that the boy turned around and left.

Naruto cursed as he gave up chasing Sasuke. The Uchiha was just too stubborn. "Damn Sasuke." The blond muttered as he glared in the direction Sasuke had gone.

"Hn." Was all he received from the Hyuga as a response.

"Oi Neji…" The blond's tone changed as he turned to address the Hyuga. "Why did you defend us? It doesn't seem like something you'd do…" surprised at Naruto's observation Neji quickly said the first thing that came to his mind.

"…I don't seem like the type to defend people…" He repeated monotonously, making Naruto stick his hands up in front of him in a defensive manner.

"Not that I don't appreciate it. It was really cool of you!" Neji raised a brow at the boy. "I guess what I'm trying to say is thanks!"

Neji mentally sighed. He had gotten out of explaining his actions. For once he was grateful for the slowness of his 'friend.'

"Do you plan on doing anything about your other teammate?" Neji asked innocently. He had no plans to go find Sakura and comfort her – after all she did not know him that well and may find it odd and uncomfortable. But something in the back of his head was nagging him to find out if she was fine.

"Er – well she'll most likely run home and cut off all lines of communication for the day again." Naruto responded as he put his hand to his chin in a thinking manner. Neji blinked.

"This has happened before?" The prodigy was in utter shock. Was Sasuke really the guy that Sakura had professed her love to?

"Yup." Somehow, Neji wanted to beat sense into the Uchiha boy. "It's best to just leave her alone. She'll be fine and dandy tomorrow!" Naruto beamed as he smiled his goofy grin. It was then when Neji wanted to punch the boy for his idiocy. Even he knew that the girl was most likely going to be feeling just as horrible the next day. It was easy to put up a façade in front of others, he knew.

---

"Hurry up Hinata!" Kiba whined as he leaned against the counter top. "This place smells!"

"It smells better than you…" Ino muttered as she stood behind the counter. Ino had been enjoying a non-stressful day before Team Kurenai had entered her store.

"I heard that!" Kiba said as he glared towards the blond girl. She glared back.

"I meant for you to!" She barked back. Worried that the two would begin one of their infamous quarrels Hinata piped up.

"Ano, Kiba-kun, I'm sorry!" She apologized as she bowed towards her team captain. "I didn't think it would take this long."

"Ah, don't worry about it," The boy said. "Do you know which flowers you wanted?"

The girl shook her head.

"I'm not sure which set my father wanted for the ceremony…" The girl responded sheepishly. "Sorry…" She added as the dog boy sighed.

"Hinata, perhaps the daffodils. They usually represent respect" Shino suggested as he thumbed the white petals. The three other genins stared at him in disbelief. "Did I say something wrong?" The boy asked as he raised a brow above his glasses.

"No… it's just that, Shino-kun..."

"That's just odd!" Kiba ended as he pointed at his comrade.

"It's not odd!" Ino defended as she slapped Kiba behind his head. He yelped in pain. "Shino-kun when did you learn so much about flowers?"

"I see." Shino responded as Kiba sent glares towards Ino again. She was ignoring him. "When I was younger," He responded, not intending to further elaborate.

"I see… So Hinata are you going with the daffodils? They're an excellent choice!"

"Ah, yes please. Thank you." The shy girl nodded. "And thank you Shino-kun." The boy nodded.

"Eh?" Kiba began as he stopped glaring at Ino. "What about me?"

"You didn't do anything but whine!" Ino tossed back at him as she jotted down some notes. The boy growled in her direction.

"Kiba-kun, I am very grateful! To you and Akamaru!" The dog barked happily, he had gotten the recognition he wanted. Kiba sighed.

"So Hinata this many is enough?" Ino showed the girl her paper. The timid Hyuga nodded. "Great! It should be shipped to your house on the weekend!"

"Thank you Ino-chan!" The girl bowed.

"Heh, I should be thanking you for your business!" Ino laughed as she waved the trio farewell.

---

Neji had long bid Naruto farewell. He was now mindlessly walking down the street of the village. He had no intention of going back to his house at the time, nor did he want to chance training. His thoughts were lingering on Haruno Sakura. How he wanted to make Sasuke pay for making the girl cry. No man should ever make her cry!

Neji stopped. His mind had been focusing on Sakura for the last couple of hours, why had he not been able to stop? Even now as he contemplated on these thoughts she still came up – making the boy feel as though he was obsessed…

"Maybe Gai is right…" The boy muttered to himself quietly. As much as he hated to admit it, but there was the possibility… He sighed inwardly. The day was coming to a quick end. 'I might as well call it a day.'

"Kiba-kun please wait!" The prodigy blinked as he looked across the road spotting his cousin with her two teammates. Hinata was chasing after Kiba and Akamaru down the street as Shino casually walked behind them. He did not know why that had peaked his interest until he noticed the shop they were leaving. It was a normal flower shop, famous for its quality in flowers. If Neji was correct, which he always was, it was the same shop where the Hyuga's would purchase large sums of bouquets for events. It was also runned by the Yamanakas…

With an idea in his head the boy quickly crossed the street. Making sure that his cousin was a fair distance away he entered.

---

The bell chimed on the door telling Ino that she had customers. 'There goes reading these embarrassing stories,' Ino sighed as she put away her teen magazine. She felt her eyes bulge as she noticed who had entered her store. The Hyugas were just flocking to her today.

"Ano, Neji-kun?" Ino asked as she noticed the boy taking quick glances at the flowers around him. "If you're here about that big order, Hinata already placed it. In fact she just left…"

The boy looked up at her in silence. It seemed as though he was contemplating something. "I didn't come for that." The boy responded finally as he avoided eye contact with the girl. She raised a brow as a theory bubbled in her head.

"Oh? What can I do for you then?" She smiled. 'Is he looking for flowers for Sakura? Man I can't believe I was wrong about him being the shy type!' she thought as she awaited his response. But he was acting more timid than his usual self.

"Yes – I was asked to find a flower for someone." The boy said as he continued to avoid the girl's eyes.

"For someone…" She repeated.

"Yes." A knowing smile soon found its way on her face.

"And this flower for someone that's not you," Neji cringed, Ino knew! "Is it for someone special? Say a sudden secret crush?"

"Yes…but they don't like _her_-them as a 'crush.'" She knew!

"Is there any particular message they wanted?" Ino asked; the prodigy was fun to tease.

"That they're special." Ino would have instantly cooed out loud if it had been someone else who had said that. Nodding her head she walked from her counter and grabbed a single white rose.

"Her you go, a single white rose. It's simple and tells the person you're pure about your reasonings." 'Of course,' Ino added in her mind, 'it also represents love, and shows that you feel you're worthy of her, as well as display your humility.'

Grabbing the flower the Hyuga inspected it. It was simple and would have to do. "I'll take it," He said as he gave Ino some money and headed to leave.

"Thanks for your business – Oh and I'm sure Sakura will love the flower!" The Hyuga cringed. Gai was going to pay for his big mouth.

---

Sakura sniffled in her pillow. Sasuke could be cruel at times, but he was honest. She had long ago promised at the Chuunin exam that she would become strong, yet nothing had happened. She blamed herself for her lack of training and improvement since then.

"Always the damsel." She cried as she smashed her fist into her pillow. Naruto had been right, Sakura had ran to her house. She had left a note by the phone to inform her parents she was not going to take any calls or seeing any visitors for the rest of the day.

Her Inner self was lecturing her how pitiful her actions had been but was being ignored. Sakura had been affected by what Sasuke had said. It was her fault!

Both Naruto and Sasuke had long surpassed her and she was still where she was from the start. The one always being left behind to look at their backs, the one always being saved.

Sakura's head popped up. She heard a noise. 'But mom and dad left for the store,' she thought to herself as she looked up from her pillow. Her eyes were quite puffy from the tears she noted as she saw her reflection on the mirror by her bed. She blinked away more tears as she heard another noise. It sounded like a 'clacking' sound. Getting up from her bed the girl looked around. She went to the window and gasped.

Hyuga Neji was down below tossing pebbles at her window. Opening the window the girl looked down at the boy with confusion written over her face.

"Neji, just go away please," She sniffled. "I don't feel like training today." The boy ignored her as he tossed an object towards her quickly. With her fast reflexes she caught it with ease. Sakura blinked, it was white rose.

"Haruno-san, you're not as useless as you think." The prodigy began. He appeared to be out of breath as he was panting. 'Did he run here?' Sakura wondered as she just stared down at the boy.

"Neji what are you talking about?" His kind words would have made more of an affect had he not been 'tampered with.' Sakura sighed.

"You have the potential of becoming a great ninja regardless of what your teammate says, or anyone else for that matter!" Sakura's eyes slightly widened. "And if you want to prove to them that you can, then I will train you no matter what!"

"Neji-kun…" The pink haired kunoichi's eyes watered, she had been moved by his words. Regardless of the fact of him meaning it or not. "I don't want to intrude…"

The boy smiled, "No intrusion at all."

---

**A/N:** Omg that was long! But you guy better like it. I edited this one like crazy. Hopefully there aren't many mistakes! I won't be around for the long weekend so this is the last chapter until next week So I look forward to all the reviews from when I return Now onto answering previous reviewers!

al2010: Thanks. And I'll leave that for later on XD

Chica De La Luna Fantasma: Glad to hear it XD and thanks!

Qtkag: Hope you like this one too

Kazeri: I love new readers XD glad that this story sparked your interest and hope you enjoy this chapter.

fairydustgems: Well I was making it so that he was so blinded by love that he would never suspect his lover XD Glad you liked it though

MistressBlossom: He was really desperate xD But I can assure you, he learned his lesson.

miaa(NLI): Oh that's fine. LoL. That would be a little to early for a kiss XD

Icecream Skittles Addict: Updated 8)


	6. Chapter 5: Trouble is brewing

**A/N:** Back from a long break of moving in all my stuff into my new house. Oh boy ; Anyways I hope you all enjoy this chapter, It's coming down to the end of the 'week' for Sakura. In the time I skipped over Neji has been training Sakura. I just didn't want to write all the fighting stuff since I'm so horrid at it… well inexperienced at least.

**Chapter 5:**

**Day 5**

Hinata resisted the urge to pace the room. Lately, her older cousin had been acting strangely, and she knew this was why her father had ordered her to call for her cousin. Hiashi already seemed to be annoyed at the fact that her cousin was taking his sweet time. Neji was always so punctual…

Hinata looked up from her spot next to her father as she heard the doors slide open revealing her cousin, Neji. The boy respectfully bowed to his elder and cousin and greeted them accordingly.

"Hiashi-sama," Neji began. "You called for me?"

"Neji, for the last few days you've been acting unusual." The older man said sternly. Hinata slightly gulped. She feared for her cousin.

"Acting unusual?" Neji repeated; he seemed surprised.

"You've been avoiding to help preparations for Hanabi's ceremony. Not only that but you missed practiced yesterday." Ever since the Chunin Exam, Neji and his uncle had become closer. The older man had begun training his nephew weekly in order to perfect his skills, as well as teach him secret moves that were unknown to the branch family. In a way, he became Neji's father figure. Of course, they would never openly express such feelings in the open. "Neji is something going on?"

"Hiashi-sama, I'm sorry." Neji apologized as he bowed. "I've been extremely busy this week with training and minor missions. But I will be here today early to help for the ceremony on the weekend."

The older Hyuga did not seem to accept this but nodded in understanding regardless. He bid the younger Hyuga farewell and allowed the boy to leave. As Neji closed the door behind him, Hinata could feel herself release the breath she was holding back. Her father looked at her from the corner of his eye.

"Hinata," her father spoke, breaking the silence between the two.

"Y-yes father?" She asked nervously.

"Make sure to check up on decorations."

"Yes father." She responded.

"You may leave." The girl bowed quickly and hurriedly left the room.

"Hanji," Hiashi called out to the empty room. "Follow Neji today and then report back to me your findings." Suddenly the room was occupied by two people, Hiashi and a slender woman with her hair to her back. The woman bowed respectfully.

"Yes, Hiashi-sama" The woman named Hanji responded. Within a second the woman vanished. No doubt to follow through with her mission.

---

Once again Sakura found herself at the mercy of the Hyuga boy. But at least this time she was able to keep her ground for a solid twenty minutes. She was improving, and for once in her life Sakura was proud of herself towards her strength. Even Neji complimented her on her improvement.

"We should take a small break," The boy had suggested as he went to fetch his water bottle off the log nearby. Sakura giggled.

"Did I do something funny?" Neji asked as he raised an amusing eyebrow. The girl only smiled and retreated to her bottle on the ground.

"Oh nothing, I was just remembering something funny Ino said." Sakura lied as she took a sip of her water. The Hyuga just shrugged, quite unlike him. For the last three days the prodigy had been quite the gentleman towards Sakura and more. Somewhere along the lines he had gained the courage to speak to her casually and had perfected hiding his blush in her presence. Well sort of.

"So Neji I really must thank you for doing this again." Sakura said as she plopped herself down onto the ground.

"Sakura, you don't have to thank me. It's my pleasure." Neji responded as he took a seat next to her.

"You know I'm always going to say thank you everyday and every chance I get." She teased as she smiled at the boy. She too had gotten use to the boy's presence. He had at first frightened her, and then intrigued her, and now she felt content with him.

"And I'm always going to respond, 'It's my pleasure, you don't have to thank me'" He smiled.

"I hope Lee and Tenten aren't jealous that I've stolen you away from them." Neji laughed. Another feature that was so unlike his usual persona. Or at least the one he would show her before they had become 'friends.'

"I'm sure they don't mind. What about your teammates?" He asked as he took a gulp of his water. Sakura sighed.

"Well, Naruto is on a mission. And Sasuke… Well I haven't seen him since we had lunch together." Neji nodded in understanding. Of course, his mind was cursing the name Uchiha for making Sakura sulk and depressed.

"So ready for another round?" Sakura suggested, as she changed the subject of her teammates. The boy smiled.

"Sure why not." He responded as they stood up. "This time, you're going to be on the offensive."

Sakura nodded and quickly jumped off into the forest as Neji stood his stance.

---

"Lee, lets just go train by ourselves." Tenten whined as she followed the fuzzy brow nin through the forest. The boy shook his head violently.

"No!" He responded as he clutched a fist and stars appeared in his eyes. He was determined, and Tenten knew it was difficult to coerce the boy into changing his mind once he got like that. "I must find Neji and beat him finally!"

Tenten sighed. The two of them had been in search of their missing teammate since the morning. They had stopped by his house, the usual training area, his favourite restaurant… But no Neji was found.

"Lee we'll never find him. If he doesn't want to be found then he's not going to be found." The boy once again shook his head violently.

"I will find him! And I will beat him!" The girl sighed once again at the boy's hotheadedness.

---

Sakura stretched. The two had finally finished their 'training session.'

"Hey Neji," The pink hair kunoichi called out to the prodigy who was staring at the shadows of a rock. "What are you doing?" The boy looked up.

"I'm checking the time." He responded. Sakura fell back a little.

"Don't you have a watch?" She asked bewildered as he shook his head in a 'no' motion. Sighing, she walked over to the boy and grabbed his hand placing an object in his palm. He was blushing from her actions as he looked at the object. It was a watch, a digital one at that. "That one can tell you your pulse as well." Sakura smiled proudly as she turned around to grab her bag. The boy blinked.

"I can have this?" He asked as he held the watch gently. She nodded.

"I'm getting a new one anyways." She responded with a nod. Suddenly Neji's mind was in utter bliss as he buckled the watch onto his bandaged hand.

"Thank you." He thanked as he observed his gift with much joy. Sakura only smiled in response.

"Hey Neji, are you doing anything today?" She asked. "If not, would you like to go eat with me? I'd hate to go alone, and my parents aren't home today…"

"I'd like to." The boy answered without hesitation.

"Great!" She smiled. "So do you like Sushi?"

---

"Lee – we're wasting a perfectly good day looking for him." Tenten said as she followed the said boy.

"He's hiding in fear!" Lee announced. "He senses that today my youth shall shine as I stand over his defeated body!" Tenten sighed.

"Can we at least eat?" The weaponist asked as she hovered a hand over her hungry stomach. The boy was about to protest until his stomach growled. Smiling sheepishly the boy nodded in agreement. Tenten sighed once again.

---

Neji was trying everything in his power not to cringe as he placed another piece of raw fish within his mouth. Sushi was not something the boy had required a taste for. Yet, when he was asked if he liked sushi the boy found himself lying. And thus, he found himself seated at an outdoor sushi bar trying to suppress the urge to regurgitate his food. Sakura, on the other hand, was enjoying her food and was completely oblivious to the prodigy's distaste for sushi.

"Hey isn't that Neji…" The said boy looked up. That feminine voice sounded familiar to him. He wanted to crawl under a rock as he heard a certain high pitched masculine voice following after it.

"Neji!" Lee cried out as he quickly popped up behind the prodigy. He was pointing an accusing finger. Neji raised a brow as he mentally sighed. "You've been hiding from me!"

"Neji-kun, where have you been? We've been looking all over for you!" Tenten asked as she walked over to the Hyuga.

"Training." He simply replied.

"Well Gai left for a mission three days ago. So you don't have to hide from us." The brown haired girl started. She took a glance at Sakura and raised a brow. "Are you here with Sakura?" She asked a bit bewildered. The boy gulped mentally as he contemplated on how to respond. Lee had finally taken notice to his pink haired beauty.

"Sakura-san a-are you here with Neji?" Lee asked; he was trying to not sound hurt. He was failing as thoughts of the two being on a date were swirling through his head. The pink kunoichi laughed slightly as she waved to the newcomers. She, like Neji, was a bit worried that Neji's teammates would get the wrong idea.

"Ah, yes I am." She replied. Did she just see Lee clutch his heart and Tenten's eyes pop out? "We bumped into one another when I came to eat here. So I decided to keep Hyuga-san company."

Lee's eyes were streaming with tears. "Sakura-san, that's so thoughtful of you!" Neji was grateful that Sakura had lied and that his teammate was an idiot.

"I didn't even know that Neji liked sushi…" Tenten wondered out loud as she looked at the prodigy.

"I've gained a certain taste for it…" He replied quietly. He was hoping that the two of them would be on their merry way.

"Really Neji-kun?" Lee asked enthusiastically as he took a seat next to the Hyuga. Tenten followed suit as she took a seat next to Sakura. "I'll have the same order that he has, please. Ne, Neji after we're done this we can spar!" The boy said happily as he separated his chopsticks.

"Yes, and Sakura why don't you come along as well." Tenten offered as she leaned on her hand as she smiled towards Sakura. Sakura laughed nervously as she nodded.

"Sure why not. It'll be interesting to see who wins…" She responded as she smiled back at the brunette. Lee was clutching his fist in determination as the tears streamed down once again. He would beat Neji in front of Sakura and not only prove to Neji that hard work pays off, but possibly gain Sakura's fancy!

---

Those tears were back on Lee's face, but not because of utter joy, but because of his defeat. Neji had once again made the hot blooded boy land in the dirt as he stood victorious over him.

Sakura quickly ran over to Lee to check if he was all right.

"Lee-san are you all right?" She asked. She was really concerned as she wiped some of the dirt off the boy's face. Lee was in bliss by this action as Neji sent mental daggers towards his teammate.

"Told you Lee," Tenten sighed as she 'tsked' her teammate. His infatuation for the girl was so obvious. "Well I've got to go. I'll hopefully see you guys tomorrow." She waved as she jumped into the trees and headed back towards town. Lee also bid the two farewells and left, leaving only Sakura and Neji together.

"I figured you'd win." She said as she smiled at the Hyuga.

"Oh?" He asked amusingly.

"Of course, who could win against the Hyuga prodigy" Sakura teased as she grabbed her back pack and waved a farewell. Neji could not help but smile at her back.

---

"Haruno Sakura?" Hiashi repeated as Hanji bowed before him. "And she is?"

"A teammate of team Kakashi. She's a year younger than Neji-san." Hanji stated as she kept her head bowed. "She belongs to no clan and is known for her intelligence. Apparently she has excellent chakra control as well..."

"I don't care for what she is – tell me about their relationship."

"They seem to be quite acquainted."

"This isn't a situation we need at the moment."

"Would Hiasha-sama like me to take care of it?" Hanji looked up.

"I'd rather not have you cause a ruckus as yet. I will speak with him and if he needs further motivation then you can take it from there." The woman nodded in understanding.

"Yes, Hiashi-sama."

---

**A/N:** sorry about the random OC, but I needed a Hyuga that was older than Neji to be spying on him. She may get a bigger role in the future but for now she'll have minor appearances.

miaa: hm well I don't necessarily have any plans to bring any of the sand nin into the story as of now. But who knows what may happen.

Chica De La Luna Fantasma: glad you liked it XD Hope you enjoy this one just as much 8)

GinaCat: Thank you!

Kazeri: I really made him a bastard didn't I? lol He'll be getting a bigger role sooner or later

Sharem: Why thank you. I love tapping into his mind

Icecream Skittles Addict: Updated XD

bubbleyum: That could all be due to the potion though. You never know how he'll act when it wears off…

Kioji: Thanks!

furryhatlover2543: lol everyone really is rooting for that couple XD

tweetybaby2: I wanted to toss in a Romeo and Juliet scenario. And I came up with that XD

al2010: Thanks XD

Gaara's desert blossom: You'll just have to wait and see 8)


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